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Rare Breeds and Other Creatures

photography by Dave Doody

text by Barbara Brown

Rare Leicester longwool lambs with their dams eye a visitor to their Historic Area pasture.

ANIMALS ARE as much a part of domestic life at Colonial
Williamsburg today as they were in the eighteenth-century city. Animals plow
fields, pull carriages, lay eggs, give milk, and serve for pets—and some
end up on the dinner table.

Through them, Historic Area
guests learn about the usefulness and adaptability of livestock, and how the
institution's rare breeds program helps preserve the bloodlines of uncommon
horses, sheep, poultry, and the like. Richard Nicoll, director of coach and
livestock, suggested a book of photographs of them. Abigail Schumann arranged
sessions for photographers David Doody, Tom Green, Barbara Lombardi, Kelly
Mihalcoe, and Lael White.

Animals don't respond to
requests to smile or look at the camera, and watching one's step in their
domains is prudent. Patience is the virtue most required, but an eye for the
unexpected is important, too. A photo shoot set up to capture horses yielded an
unplanned shot of the stable cat, Tigger, stalking a mouse.

Presented here are a few of the photos selected for inclusion in
the just-out volume Link to the Past, Bridge to the Future: Colonial
Williamsburg's Animals. Written by John P. Hunter, it is
available at www.williamsburgmarketplace.com.